Free SM1 tablet bribe for SHS students’ to vote for NPP – Mahama

Former president, John Dramani Mahama says the government distribution of the free student mate 1 tablets to Senior High School students is a strategic move to secure votes from the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) students.

Speaking at a public lecture at Wisconsin International University College in Accra, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress said the government has neglected essential ongoing educational projects to focus on the tablet distribution

“You bring a new curriculum, the children have [had] no textbooks in basic schools for the last four years, and you think that giving pre-tertiary students tablets is more important. Of course, everybody knows the political expediency

The pre-tertiary students are going to register in May because some of them will be turning 18 years and above; some are 18 already, and they are going to be the ones voting. So, this is a gift to entice them to vote for the current government

Otherwise, if you are using GH¢1.3 billion to give pre-tertiary students laptops, our priority would have been different. Other things are begging for funding in our educational system than those laptops. But it is a bribe for them to vote for this government,” he stated.

In a related development, the Minister in Charge of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum says the first batch distribution of the mate 1 tablets for students in various government second cycle schools will commence this week.

In an interview with JoyNews on JoyNews’ Newsfile monitored by Thisterm.com, he said the first phase of distribution of the students mate 1 tablets will see about 450,000 electronic devices distributed to Senior High School students.

The distribution of tablets, the Education Minister indicated has been categorized into three phases, with 450,000 to be distributed in 32 second cycle schools (SHS) to ensure the effective distribution of a total of 1.3 million tablets.

“The 450,000 is a little less than 30 %, the deployment is such that it is in three phases. The first phase which is hitting the regions and schools in the next coming week, is going to 32 schools in the 16 regions,” Adutwum told JoyNews.